Convergencia Research, Consultoría especializada en Latinoamérica y Caribe
Thursday, September 12, 2019

Panama promotes its digital free zone

The so-called "Silicon Valley" of the Central American country will require investments of US$38 million. It will offer specialized services in e-commerce, big data, blockchain, among others, which are expected to generate more than 1,000 jobs during its first year of operation. The lack of trained technical personnel will be a challenge to solve.

The government of Laurentino Cortizo estimates that the start-up of the BPO´s Panama Free Zone will require an initial investment of US$10 million, and US$28 million in a second phase. The complex will have an area of ??2.5 hectares, which will include a data center and infrastructure of Huawei, a central building, eight offices, and a higher technical institute specialized in education and training on technology and telecommunications.

There are those who already refer to the project as the "Silicon Valley" of Panama: it aims to offer specialized services such as e-commerce, big data, blockchain, among others, and will generate more than 1,000 jobs in its first year of operation. However, the Central American country today has a deficit of qualified personnel to fill positions related to the technological area. Therefore, an active participation in the initiative of the Instituto Nacional de Formación Profesional y Capacitación para el Desarrollo Humano (Inadeh) (National Institute for Vocational Learning and Training for Human Development) (Inadeh) is expected.

The main investors in the digital free zone will be the International Bank of China and the Panamanian Global Bank, while it is expected to attract investments from IT and high-tech companies, as well as higher education centers to fill job vacancies that eventually arise.

In this regard, Juan Planells, rector of the University Universidad Santa María La Antigua and Trustee of the National Competitiveness Center, said that the lack of technical personnel in Panama leads to the hiring of foreign professionals. That is why he called on local students to take advantage of Inadeh, which is responsible for technical training by the State. Planells said the agency has already demonstrated its effectiveness in producing technicians who worked on the expansion of the Canal, where 90% of the employees were Panamanians.

For his part, René Quevedo, a local specialist in labor issues, considered the installation of the digital free zone as a challenge for Panama: “Only 1 out of 3 students who start the First Cycle graduates as a Bachelor, and 95% of low-income graduates does not continue his studies, that is to say that less than 2% of the young people of the poorest quintile of the population study beyond Secondary Education”.

The place chosen for the facilities is Brisas Golf, in the district of San Miguelito. Its location is strategic since it will have access to the Tocumen International Airport, the port of Balboa, the connection of the North Corridor with the Panama-Colón Highway, and from this point, the port of Cristóbal and the Free Zone of Colón.

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